Divorce is never easy. However, it can be less painful if the spouses agree on how to end their marriage. This article discusses different ways of getting an amicable divorce.
Joint divorce
A joint divorce is a divorce between two people. The spouses file for divorce together with the same paperwork. They are therefore co-applicants for the divorce.
The following are the conditions for a divorce to be filed jointly:
- The spouses must agree on all the consequences of their divorce, custody of the children, child support, spousal support, division of the value of the property, etc.
- There must be no points of contention between the spouses, for example, they must agree on the date on which they ceased to live together.
- The ground for divorce must be separation for more than one year. Adultery and physical and mental cruelty cannot be invoked.
If the spouses choose to retain a single lawyer or notary to draft their agreement and divorce paperwork, that lawyer or notary must advise and be faithful to both spouses, i.e. he or she will not favour the position of one spouse over the other.
Divorce: change of vocabulary in the Law
As of1 March 2021, the Divorce Act no longer uses the terms "child custody" and "access". Instead, the term "parenting time" is now used to refer to the relationship of a divorced parent with his or her child. For more information, see our article: Divorce: what is "parenting time" and what to do when you move.
Divorce by consent
The spouses are not obliged to file for divorce together, even if they agree.
In other words, the spouses can divorce amicably, but they do so separately. For example, this would be the case if the spouses are in one of the following situations:
- They each want to be represented by their own lawyer.
- One of the spouses wants to invoke adultery or physical or mental cruelty asgrounds for divorce.
- The divorce is already filed by one of the spouses and they have reached an agreement later in the divorce process.
- The spouses do not agree on all the consequences of the divorce, for example, they agree on custody of the children but not on sharing the value of their property.
The spouses can record the points they agree on in a written agreement that they will sign. This agreement can also be called a "draft agreement" or a "consent".
The agreement can eventually be transformed into a judgment and become part of the divorce judgment between the spouses.
How to turn the agreement into a judgment depends on the situation of the spouses. Consult a lawyer for more information.
https://educaloi.qc.ca/capsules/le-divorce-a-lamiable/